Ederson didn’t hesitate when choosing his Ballon d’Or winner and causes huge controversy with his pick

Ederson will have caused big controversy in the Manchester City dressing room with his pick for the Ballon d’Or.

This year’s shortlist is perhaps more intriguing than in the past, as neither Lionel Messi nor Cristiano Ronaldo have been nominated for the first time since 2003.

Only Luka Modric and Karim Benzema have interrupted the pair’s dominance of the award over the last two decades.

Ederson shares the City dressing room with Erling Haaland, who came second in the voting last year, and Rodri, who is one of the bookies’ favourites to claim the 2024 title.

City have a total of four players nominated for the men’s award, with Ruben Dias and Phil Foden also making the shortlist.

But when asked who he wants to win the award, the keeper named Vinicius Jr, one of his teammates for the Brazil national team.

“I am rooting for Vini Jr. to win the Ballon d’Or. I hope he wins,” he told TNT Sports Brazil.

Vinicius Jr and Jude Bellingham were both named among the favourites following Real Madrid’s La Liga and Champions League double last season. The Brazilian chalked up 24 goals and 11 assists across the campaign for his club.

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Bellingham was also one of the stars of the summer’s European Championships, where he helped England reach the final – although they lost to Rodri’s Spain.

Rodri himself was substituted at half time with a hamstring injury but was named the tournament’s best player.

Vini Jr is the only Brazilian to make the 30-strong shortlist, which is dominated by players from England and Spain.

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The Premier League is well represented, with Emiliano Martínez (Aston Villa), and Arsenal’s Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka and William Saliba joining former City and current Chelsea standout Cole Palmer in receiving nominations.

From a City perspective, Pep Guardiola has been nominated for Coach of the Year while Savinho is up for the Kopa Trophy, which is presented to the world’s best player under 21.

The winners are due to be announced at the awards ceremony on Monday 28 October in Paris.